


it's not the waking, it's the rising

by godmarked



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
Genre: Character Study, Fate & Destiny, Gen, Ghosts, Identity Issues, Implied Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda), Missing Scene, Nonbinary Character, Nonbinary Sheik (Legend of Zelda), Reincarnation, Spirits, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-18
Updated: 2020-04-18
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:53:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23713942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/godmarked/pseuds/godmarked
Summary: In the Sanctuary below Hyrule Castle, Tetra has a conversation with a ghost.
Relationships: Tetra & Zelda (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 32





	it's not the waking, it's the rising

The basement below Hyrule Castle is starting to creep Tetra out. 

She’s only been down here alone for a little bit- half an hour, perhaps more. It’s hard to tell the time, with the only windows being stained glass, and she’s not even sure if time  _ passes _ in Hyrule anymore. It could very easily be stagnant, the magic that preserved this realm hovering at a constant midday, the true sun more than an ocean away. Goddess, how Tetra misses the ocean, the feeling of salt and sun against her skin as she sailed. 

She doesn’t know how long she’s going to be down here. How long does it take for a boy and a boat to restore power to a sword as old as time? There isn’t any food down in the basement with her, and only a few inches of water, although it at least looks clean. In a castle as old as this one, she guesses there are probably rats, and although she’s eaten them before in a pinch, it’s not the sort of thing she’s anxious to do again. 

Tetra sighs, and the noise echoes around the basement. “What a way to treat a princess,” she says to the empty room, and the word weighs heavy on her tongue. She sits down on the pedestal that once held the Master Sword and starts to pull the long silk gloves off of her hands, dumping them on the stone next to her. Her skin is so pale, now, fourteen years of sun and scars washed away to lily-white. There’s a scar on her thumb that she got when she was six, the first time her mother let her handle a dagger on her own, and it’s just… gone. 

She thinks maybe that was kind of the point, though. The King refused to call her anything but Zelda, refused to acknowledge that she was a person before all this, outside of fate and destiny and the will of the goddesses. She’s still Tetra, even when she’s dressed up and prettied in silks and dresses. Her flintlock and dagger may be gone, but the people of the Great Sea don’t fear her crew for nothing- she’s Tetra, fiercest pirate captain to ever ride the waves. The stained glass portraits stare down at her as she methodically strips off the princess gown she was given, unclipping hair baubles and removing jewelry. 

“At least my underwear is the same,” she mutters, folding the last bit of clothing and piling it up. “I’d like my pants back,” she says, louder this time, looking expectantly at the room. “Whatever magic mojo gave me the dress, you can have it back- I want my clothing back.” She pauses. “And my dagger, and my gun, please and thank you.” 

Nothing happens. It’s not like Tetra really expected that to  _ work _ , but the disappointment is still cutting anyways, and now she just feels… silly. Like she’s a silly little girl standing in her underwear asking for wishes to come true. 

“It doesn’t work like that.” The presence is sudden, as if they appeared from nowhere, and Tetra scrambles backwards away from them. They’re tall, thin, with ash-blonde hair and ruby red eyes. Dark clothes cling to curves and muscle, and there’s a mask that’s pulled low to expose the stranger’s face. “Peace,” they say, raising their hands. “I bring no harm, Princess Zelda.” 

“That’s not my name,” Tetra snaps on instinct. Her hands curl into fists, and no matter how embarrassed she is she won’t waste the time or effort trying to cover herself up. Not when she could be in danger, when she could still need her hands to fight. “And why should I believe you bring peace, stranger, when you shouldn’t know of this place at all?” 

The stranger’s eyes crinkle at the edges. “Apologies, Tetra,” they say. They sit down on the ground, long legs folding underneath themselves. “And this isn’t simply a basement, or a sanctuary,” they say. “This is a tomb.” 

As the words leave their lips, the inches of water bubble and sink away, revealing stone slabs etched with names- with  _ one  _ name, over and over again, dates carved underneath. “Zeldas,” Tetra breathes, eyes going wide. “You’re a ghost,” she realizes. “And this is-” 

“The final resting place of every Princess Zelda, from the time this castle was built,” the stranger finishes. Tetra can see now the odd sheen to their skin, the not-quite-there patches where the tomb behind them is visible through their skin. “My own tomb is there- underneath the portrait of Impa, my mentor,” they say, nodding. “These portraits depict seven sages who once helped save Hyrule from the same darkness you soon will face.” 

“You don’t  _ look  _ like a princess,” Tetra says, whipping around to look at the stranger. “You look like she does,” nodding towards the portrait- Impa. “You hardly look like a Zelda at all!” 

The stranger- Princess Zelda -grins this time, red eyes sparkling. “Zelda is no more my name than it is yours,” they say. “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, little sister. You may call me Sheik.” 

“Your grave says Zelda,” Tetra says, but her voice is softer this time. There is a familiar sense of sadness in Sheik’s eyes as they look at Tetra, head tilting to the side. 

“Our family is very big on tradition,” they say, and they nod to the clothes. “I know it’s uncomfortable, but your friend will eventually be back, and you’ll need something more than your underclothes.” 

Embarrassment floods Tetra’s system, cheeks flushing pink as she scrambles for her clothing. Sheik obligingly covers their eyes, humming a comforting, familiar tune under their breath. “What is that?” Tetra asks, and Sheik smiles again. 

“A lullaby,” they say. “My mother sang it for me, and I would bet your mother sang it to you.” They pause, grin softening. “After my mother died, my dear friend would play it for me on his ocarina,” they say.

Tetra clears her throat, and Sheik uncovers their eyes. “It… it is that tune,” Tetra admits. “My mother would sing it while we sailed.” 

“Your friend would learn to conduct the winds to it,” Sheik says. “If you asked.” 

Tetra’s cheeks flush once more, and she steadfastly ignores the implication of her ancestor’s words. “How did you handle it? What they wanted to be, and who you were?” She crosses her legs and sits across from Sheik. “With all this talk of destiny and fate, how did you stop yourself from going mad?” 

“Link,” Sheik says, simple and honest, as if that one name wouldn’t rock Tetra to her core. “He saved me from the darkness, he saved me from myself- I thought my destiny wouldn’t be so bad, as long as he was in it.” Sheik exhales, long and slow. “Looking back, it wasn’t just him. I had Impa, I had myself- us Hylian Princesses are made of stronger stock than you’d think,” they explain. “We are scholars, and champions, warriors and mages. I am of the Sheikah people, and you are a pirate, and no titles can take that away.” 

“But had Link not been by my side, I wouldn’t have lived long enough to realize any of that.” They look incredibly relaxed, expression open and warm. Their red eyes pierce right down to Tetra’s soul, burning like a fire. “You are not alone, Princess Tetra. Think to the people who love you, and call upon their strength to guide you.” 

Tears blur Tetra’s vision as her crew’s faces shimmer in her memory. Link’s face when he had reunited with Aryll, Senza’s deep belly laughter, Mako’s inventions and his delight when they worked. She could hear Zuko and Nudge’s playful bickering and Niko’s challenges and declaration, feel Gonzo’s hand on her shoulder, warm and reassuring. She could see her mother’s face, beautiful and brave and fearless. 

And she could see other Princesses, those who came before her. Flashes of memories that didn’t belong to her but warmed her heart all the same- a sky full of large, colorful birds; a boy clad in dark green chasing after her through a palace garden; laying in a grassy meadow and listening to the sweet music of an Ocarina play. 

Tetra’s eyes had slid shut, recalling the lives of every princess prior to herself, so she feels rather than see’s Sheik’s hands on her shoulders as her predecessor presses a warm kiss to her forehead. “May the goddess light your way,” Sheik bids, “and may you never forget who you are, Tetra.” 

When she opens her eyes, there is rumbling from above, the back of her hand growing warm as the Triforce of Wisdom lights up, gold and glittering. “Thank you,” Tetra tells it, and she knows that Sheik- that every other Zelda will hear her. She turns to look at the tombs, water rising above them once more, covering the graves of her ancestors.

Tetra knows that after they defeat Ganondorf, no one will ever see this room again. The princesses will be lost, their spirits sealed away with their kingdom. “Rest easy, sisters,” she tells the tomb, voice echoing. “You will not be forgotten. I swear to you, and to the goddess who bore us, that I will not forget this place, this legacy.” The words weigh on her, but Tetra knows it is the type of weight she must bear. 

_ Link is waiting for you _ , she hears, and it isn’t her own voice, but it isn’t quite Sheik’s. It sounds like a harmony, a chorus of voices urging her to walk up the stairs, out of the sanctuary beneath the castle. Her feet pound against stone steps as she scrambles up towards the door, water filling the sanctuary under her feet.  _ Go, little sister. Go, be wise- but do not forget to be brave.  _

Tetra leaves behind the tomb, and with a deep breath, she steps into the light. 

**Author's Note:**

> hello i am replaying the wind waker for the third time and i just got to the tetra reveal. it personally makes me really sad so i wrote this to get some of my feels out!! i hope you are all staying safe in this quarantine & i appreciate you reading this. 
> 
> come give me a follow on [twitter](https://twitter.com/zackwritesstuff) or [tumblr](https://lovecorpse.tumblr.com/) to see more of my writing


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